PRESS RELEASE
May 17 2003

Tokyo Meeting under the Threat of Failure

*Indonesia Must be Responsible if it Fails
*GAM Remains Committed to Save the Tokyo JC Meeting

At the last critical seconds, GAM leaders still struggle to save the JC Meeting in Tokyo, which is under the threat of failure due to the arrest of most of GAM negotiators who were going to leave for Tokyo. GAM leaders and international community are working hard to get those negotiators who are still in Indonesian police detention released so that they can leave for Tokyo immediately. However, all this will depend on the will of Indonesian government, whether it has a good intention or not.

The Acheh National Armed Forces leaders condemn the arrest of GAM negotiators by the Indonesian colonial authorities.

All allegations addressed to them were deliberately fabricated as such for the purpose of obstructing access of the negotiators to the dialog table. Even more than that, Indonesian colonial authorities have also been trying hard to criminalize GAM leaders abroad but their bad intention found a shameful failure and they even received serious diplomatic embarrassment.

The Indonesian colonial authorities first accused GAM negotiators of having violated JSC travel protocol, then detained them. Indonesian parliament must question the executives when violation of JSC protocol was entered into Indonesian Criminal Code. When the colonial authority knew the reason was not enough to block the mobility of GAM negotiators, then it accused them of having been involved in crime and terrorism. Indonesia as the only remaining colonial power on the earth will certainly always try as hard as possible to position the freedom fighters as criminals.

The purpose of the Indonesian colonial government by detaining GAM negotiators is clear, that is to sabotage the JC Meeting in Tokyo on 17 and 18 May, and aimed at even a bigger goal, to crush all solution process to the conflict in Acheh through peaceful means. The Indonesian colonial government should have realized that the attention of the international community is now spotting them. The international community is ridiculing the attitude of Indonesian government, which is pretending as though it were a super power

GAM with international community is trying to save the Tokyo meeting from failure at the last critical moment. GAM hopes that Indonesian colonial government will not always remain with its recalcitrance but shift to be more intelligent. This will save many souls and save their own faces.

Evidence has been more than enough that Indonesian colonial power has not only violated CoHA in the field through its personnel, but has as well violated CoHA structurally and institutionally. The increase of military troops and military weapons in Acheh as well as the statements by Indonesian leaders that Indonesia will launch military operation in Acheh despite the peace dialog is itself blatant structural and institutional violation to CoHA, which is still in effect until now.

The plan of the Indonesian colonial government to drive Achehnese people to IDPs camps is also a serious violation of International Military Code. It is clear that Indonesia has violated CoHA both in the field and in Jakarta.

The military operation which is being and will be launched in Acheh will face a complete fiasco. We will crush them and we will compel the colonial troops to flee to the sea. The Achehnese people will, shoulder-to-shoulder with the Acheh National Armed Forces, drive the colonial power if the Indonesian colonialists remain obstinate to wage aggression campaign in Acheh and neglect the peace deal that the international community has been striving for.
 

 Central Military Command,

TNA Spokesman,

signed: